J.J. Abrams’ Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker passed the $300 million mark domestically on Friday — its eighth day in release — as it came close to catching up with Star Wars: The Last Jedi.
Last weekend, Rise of Skywalker opened nearly 20 percent behind Jedi after getting snubbed by many critics.
Audience word-of-mouth, however, has fueled the Disney and Lucasfilm tentpole to huge numbers at the lucrative holiday box office, where it earned another $26.2 million on Friday for a North American cume of $316 million (that compares to $321 million for Jedi at the same point in its run).
Skywalker is expected to top the five-day Christmas chart (Wednesday through Sunday) with $140 million, including $76 million for the weekend proper. That would put its 10-day domestic total at $367 million, compared to $368 million for Jedi.
Sony’s Jumanji: The Next Level is easily holding at a merry No. 2. The sequel is projecting a five day gross of $59 million for a domestic total of $175 million through Sunday (the pic is now in its third weekend).
Thanksgiving tentpole Frozen 2, from Walt Disney Animation Studios, continues to sing loudly and is looking at a third-place finish for the five day holiday with $26 million for a domestic tally through Sunday of $421 million.